President condemns fresh attack on Bali

President condemns fresh attack on Bali

Rendi Witular, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Stunned by deadly explosions in the resort island of Bali,
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono immediately held a press
conference on Saturday in which he condemned the blasts as
terrorist attacks. "The blasts were clearly terrorist attacks as
the targets were random and were done in public places," said
Susilo only an hour after the blasts.

Top government and key security officials, with the exception
of Vice President Jusuf Kalla, were present at the press
conference held at Halim Perdana Kusumah air base.

Speaking to journalists, the retired four-star general
explained that necessary measures were being taken to treat the
victims and investigate the blasts. The President himself would
visit the blast sites on Sunday "in order to ensure correct
measures are taken to handle the post-blast situation."

The President said the blasts were regrettable, happening
precisely when Bali was enjoying economic growth even better than
the situation before the Bali bombings in 2002 in which over 200
people were killed, mostly foreign tourists.

The President disclosed at the press conference that the
government had actually received intelligence information in July
that terrorist networks from Indonesia, Malaysia and the
Philippines were planning attacks in Jakarta.

"The terrorists had even prepared the bombs," said the
President, adding that after receiving the information he had
ordered security personnel to beef up security in the capital,
but apparently the terrorists had refocused their attention to
Bali. Susilo expressed his condolences to the victims of Jimbaran
and Kuta blasts and called on the public to work harder to
prevent terrorism from taking place in the nation.

The blasts have piled on the problems that Susilo must
confront. He is currently facing mounting public protests after
his government increased fuel prices by an average 126 percent.